Morenatsu: Broken Ties (Juuichi Route)
by Juuichi-San-Loves-Honey
Summary: Hajime doesn't get out much. Living in a small village like Minasoto your whole life doesn't lead to much adventure, especially when you aren't looking for it. With only one summer left until university, he makes an oath with himself to not get attached to the village at all. But that's easier said than done when he is the only one who can help someone who can't help themselves.
1. Prologue

**Hey Readers!**

 **So, here's the story. I've wanted to complete the older Morenatsu fanfiction for a while, but it's hard to get back into the mindset I was in then. I also don't like how I wrote Mikazuki.**

 **I've been playing Morenatsu again and I want to write a new story, for Mikazuki of course. If there's a lot of people who want me to finish the other one, I might…**

 **For now, enjoy this new story! 3**

 **Prologue**

Damn, the streets are crowded today. This is weird, especially for a small town like Minasoto.

My mother had sent me out to get a few things for dinner that evening. Summer had just begun and I was ready for some R and R. Most of my friends went to the city for the summer so I would just sit at home and play video games.

Suddenly, as I was walking down the street to the market, someone tugged at my shirt. I turned around and looked down to see a small wolf boy wagging his tail like crazy. If there was ever such a thing as too cute, Shun-kun would fit the bill.

"Hajime! What are you doing?" He asked, clearly happy to see me. This little guy and I would play video games online sometimes together. He was probably confused as to why I was out and about. I didn't usually go outside just to enjoy the outdoors.

"Just getting some food for my mom." I said. "Where are you off to today buddy?" I asked him.

He smiled even bigger, something that I wasn't sure was even possible.

"Hiroyuki is back in town for the summer! We all haven't seen him in years!" He said, grinning up at me. Hiroyuki. That name sounded familiar. Where had I heard it before?

I was homeschooled, so it's not like I was classmates with him. Shun must have mentioned him at some point. A boy who used to live here and moved to the city a few years back. Lucky bastard.

"You know, I know you don't really know my friends, but if you want, you could join me and come hang out with all of us. I'm sure we'd have a great summer together! Maybe go to the beach, or camping, or to that festival they have here!" Shun said, wagging his tail.

Hmm… should I? Hiroyuki might feel like he has competition if I show up unannounced. Besides, it's not like I knew any of Shun's friends. I probably couldn't even name most of them if you showed me their pictures.

"Sorry kiddo, maybe some other time. I gotta get these items to my mom." I said, ruffling the fur on his tiny head.

His face drooped downward in sadness, but only for a short moment.

"Ok Hajime… I understand. Just know you're always welcome with us!" He said, giving me a hug and then running off towards Raimon, the famous pub in town. I smiled, and turned to go towards the market.

It was better this way… I was going to leave for university next year. I wouldn't want to get attached to any new friends for just a year and then leave them forever.

I bumped into someone on my way to the market on accident. Exchanging apologies, we both made our way in opposite directions.

The bear I had bumped into turned around for just a brief second.

He was sure he had seen that boy around the village before, but knew nothing about him.

It was a shame… he was kinda cute.

Ahh, no time for such thoughts… it's time to go see Hiroyuki. He really missed Hiroyuki…

But he would make sure no one found out about that. It just wasn't natural. Right?


	2. June 1st

**June 1** **st**

"Hajime! Get your butt down here and help me with dinner!" My mom yelled to me from down the stairs.

Although I had just recently made the promise to myself to get out more often, nothing of the sort had happened yet. Today was one of the hottest days on record. Or at least that was the excuse I gave to myself.

Arriving in the dining room, I sat down at one of the stools in the bar area. My mother was cleaning up some dishes to make dinner on. Glancing out the window, I saw the last remaining bits of sunlight disappear from behind the rice fields.

"A letter came about your university." My mother said, pointing to an envelope that was sitting on the counter nearby. I tore it open and withdrew the letter inside. I was already accepted into a university in the city, and the letter just addressed that I needed to accept back. The deadline was by the end of summer.

"These aren't personalized right? They don't really care that I, specifically, am coming to their university. I mean, it's got a student body of like a hundred thousand students." I said, throwing the letter into the garbage.

"Nevertheless, this is a good sign! Aren't you excited to get out of this backwoods village? That's what you're always telling me anyways." My mother said, smirking. I may have said that a lot in the time I've been here, but she knows I'll miss this place.

"University will be good for you. You don't have many friends here in the village. You'll be able to meet new people." My mom said.

She was right, Shun and I would play video games every so often, but most of my friends at school had already moved away.

"By the way, I actually need a few items from the store for dinner. Could you run down there and get them for me?" My mother said, handing me a piece of paper with food related items scribbled on it.

I got sudden déjà vu. Didn't something like this happen last year? Was my mom just trying to get me out of the house? Everything made sense now. Conspiracy confirmed!

Hmm, that was odd. I grabbed the paper from her hands, slid my feet into my shoes, grabbed my flashlight and walked out the door.

The roads were very dark at night. There weren't any lights around the village, but most beastmen could see in the dark. A human like me, however, could not. I relied quite heavily on my flashlight.

The market closed in about an hour so I started to run down the dirt roads to the town center of the village. The rice fields to my sides fluttered ever so slightly in the evening breeze.

Suddenly, a large figure stepped out from the rice stalks right in front of me, and I collided with them with a resounding *thud*.

I fell onto the ground on my butt, and my flashlight was thrown to the side. Whoever it was that I ran into remained unmoved from their position. I could only make out a large shape, no features whatsoever. The figure reached down, grabbed my light, and handed it to me.

"This must be yours. I apologize for bumping into you." He said, in a deep tone. I shone the flashlight into his face.

"Ahh! Be careful where you point that thing!" the figure said, putting his hands up to his face. He appeared to be a beastman, a bear, with brown fur. For some reason my heart was in my throat and my face was starting to turn red.

"S…sorry." I managed to spit out. Who was this? I don't remember ever seeing him in the village anywhere. Not that I would know, I guess.

The two of us stood in silence for a moment, only a moment, before I tried to speak up.

"Um…" I said. Um? Was that the best I had? Damn Hajime, no wonder you're still single.

"If you're wondering why I'm out here, I'm looking for someone." He said. Wow, a real mind reader this one.

Looking for someone? After dark? He seemed pretty concerned about whoever it was.

"Do you want some help?" I said. "Two people can cover more ground than one."

He looked at me, confused.

"It's not like I have anything to give you…" he said, scratching his chin.

Give me? Why would I need something in return? Doesn't he know that good people help each other?

"I don't need anything in return for helping you… that's just what I do!" I said, smiling. His face began to curl into a smile when suddenly someone else came running in from the other direction.

"Hey! What are you doing talking to Mitazuki?" The voice said, clearly male, but also clearly human.

Coming into the light, I saw that it was Ryoko, a boy who just moved to the village last year. He was shorter than me by a little bit, with a tank top and shorts on.

Mitazuki huh? That must have been the bears name. It definitely sounded like a last name though.

"Oh. He said he was looking for someone, so I offered to help. Are you 'someone'"? I asked Ryoko. I saw Mitazuki's eyes glance at Ryoko for a moment and then back at the ground.

"You were looking for me?" Ryoko asked the bear who turned towards him.

"You've been out of the house since yesterday. I was worr… I was concerned." The bear said, not making eye contact with Ryoko.

The boy scoffed. "Concerned? I was just hanging with the guys. I have my own life, you know." He said, rolling his eyes. Although the look on the bear's face didn't change, I could tell he was upset by this remark.

I realized if I didn't leave now I wouldn't make it to the market in town. As much as this situation made me feel uncomfortable, I had to leave.

"Uhh… the market will close if I don't get going, so I'll catch you two later." I said, beginning to run towards the town.

I could've sworn I heard Ryoko say "I'll make sure you don't." as I ran past him.

What was going on? Mitazuki didn't seem like the type to be hanging around with a guy like Ryoko.

Ryoko was infamous around the village for causing trouble. He was the same age as me and he definitely didn't graduate last month.

It almost seemed like they were living together, so were they a couple? It almost seemed like Ryoko wanted nothing to do with Mitazuki, yet Mitazuki was out all day looking for him. Something was wrong. I doubted anyone else knew about this. Mitazuki was cute…

These were all baseless assumptions, but something inside me knew that I had to do something.

I wouldn't let emotion get the best of me. It wasn't for any ulterior motive that I was deciding to do this. It was because it felt like the right thing to do and that something needed to change.

I found my reason to get out this summer. I was going to find out what was going on and do whatever I can to help.


	3. June 2nd

**June 2** **nd**

It's so nice to just sleep until you wake up naturally. No alarms, no tests to take, no responsibilities.

Except today, I did have something I wanted to do. I wanted to try and figure out what was wrong with Mitazuki-san.

But mostly because the whole situation last night seemed really bad. Ryoko… I didn't know too much about him but I knew he really wasn't a good person. Whether or not it was me, I felt that Mitazuki deserved much better.

I had a few choices of what to do today. I could pay a visit to Shun's house and ask him if he knew anything, although knowing him, he probably didn't even understand what was going on. If I texted Shun, I could probably get the addresses of everyone in his friend group and ask them about Mitazuki, or I could even go straight to Mitazuki's house and see what was up.

I knew their names, but not their faces.

The last option seemed the most likely to get me in trouble, so I decided to stick with my gut and visit Shun.

The sun was rising ever higher in the sky as I made my way down the road. Summer was definitely here. I wiped sweat from my brow and took a sip from a water bottle I had brought with me.

As I was walking, a figure came into view. Not quite as big as what would have been Mitazuki, but still a large figure. It was a tiger, wearing a red tank top, seemingly panting from the heat.

As I got closer, I addressed him.

"Hey, are you alright?" I asked, and the tiger looked at me with a tired expression.

"I didn't know it was going to be so hot out today… even walking to town is a hassle." He said, panting. I guess beastmen didn't do so well in the summer heat. That would make sense given the fur and all.

"Um, I have some water here, would you like some?" I asked him, extending my hand with the bottle in it to him. His ears perked up immediately.

"Really? Thanks!" he said, grabbing the water and, after taking a sip from it, doused his whole body with the remaining contents. He let out a relieved sigh.

…I didn't say use the whole thing… Although, the scene before me was quite hot, I had to admit.

He shook himself dry and handed the bottle back to me.

"Man, you're a lifesaver! Hey, haven't I seen you around the village before?" He asks me.

"Uh yeah! I'm Hajime. I live just down the road there." I said, pointing in the general direction of my house.

"No way! We always wondered who lived there… are you Shun's friend? He mentions you occasionally. Oh, I'm sorry. I'm Torahiko by the way." The tiger said, extending his hand.

Shun mentioned me? This was the first I'd heard of it. That would make meeting the rest of the group easy enough. So this was Torahiko. According to Shun he was like the leader of their little group.

"Nice to meet you Tora-san." I said, shaking his hand…er…paw. His fur was soft, and the pads on his hands were cool to the touch.

"Just Torahiko is fine! I mean, you offered me your water without a second's hesitation, and that to me means that we're automatically friends!" he said, laughing.

I smiled. Maybe making friends wasn't that hard after all. What a cheesy thought. I shook my head.

"Something wrong?" Torahiko said.

"No, I was just… actually… I did have one question. I met a bear by the name of Mitazuki the other day and I was wondering if you could tell me about him." I said, and as soon as I said his name, the tiger tensed up. Aha! Something must have been up.

"J…Juuichi-san? What about him do you want to know?" Torahiko asked. Juuichi. That must have been the bear's first name.

Now things were beginning to make sense. Shun mentioned Juuichi one day when we were playing online. Although… the way Torahiko was acting was odd. From what Shun told me, the two of them were good friends. That would be the question I would choose to ask.

"Uhh… have you and him hung out recently?" I asked directly. This would get me some answers.

Torahiko's face dropped a bit.

"Not as much as we used to… things haven't been the same in a while. None of us see him much anymore." He said, looking off to the side.

"Did you all use to hang out a lot?" I asked him, and I saw his face brighten a bit.

"Yeah, it was great. Even after Hiroyuki left… oh, Hiroyuki is my boyfriend by the way. Even after he left we all hung out a lot. An inseparable group of friends through and through. Then, after Hiro visited last summer, Juuichi suddenly stopped coming around. We would see him in town occasionally but…." Torahiko suddenly stopped. His expression darkened.

"Hey, I really have to go. Thanks for the water, bud. I won't forget it. You and I should hang out some time. Come find me if you're ever bored one day and want to hang." He said, smiling as he took off in the other direction.

So… Juuichi stopped hanging out with his friends after last summer. That's almost a whole year.

Another revelation… Hiroyuki is dating Torahiko. Hiro was the boy that used to live here and then visited last summer. I had a flashback to the day Shun met me in front of Raimon. I had the chance to go in…

Oh well. Nothing I can do now. I've got to get to Shun's house and see what else I can learn.

I rang the doorbell to Shun's house. A short, sweet wolf woman answered the door.

"Oh! Hajime! What a lovely surprise! Shun is up in his room like usual. You should take him out to the park or something today." His mother said. I smiled.

"Yes ma'am." I said, walking past her, taking my shoes off before walking into the house, and running up the stairs to Shun's room.

"Hajime!" He said as soon as I entered the room, running up to give me a hug.

"Hey kiddo, it's been a while since the two of us have seen each other hasn't it." I said, and he nodded.

"Too long! You wanna play video games?" he asked, wagging his tail. The two of us usually played online but occasionally I would come over and play with him.

"How about we do something different today. You wanna make some food and have a picnic in the park?" I asked him and he cocked his head slightly.

"You? A picnic? That could be fun!" He said, suddenly running downstairs. His mother was two steps ahead of us, and had already packed us a lunch in a basket.

"You boys have fun now!" She said, waving her hand as we walked out the door.

The park was nicer than the road, it had a kind summer breeze blowing through it.

We set up a blanket on the soft grass under the shade of a tree and started to eat. I took a bite of my sandwich as I thought of how I would ask about Juuichi-san.

"So, Shun, how is everyone?" I asked. He smiled, his tail attempting to wag from underneath him.

"Everyone is great! I just saw them yesterday. We all went to Tatsu-nii's house to play tag! It was really fun. Kounosuke was there, late as usual, and Tatsu-nii of course, Torahiko showed up and Kouya and Shin came. Kyouji brought Soutarou as usual. Soutarou and I are really starting to get along! It's super awesome!" Shun said, happily biting into a slice of watermelon.

My heart dropped every time he said someone's name. None of them was Juuichi-san. I was beginning to feel really bad for them all. Something must have happened.

Shun must have noticed my drop in attitude so of course he spoke up.

"Hajime? What's wrong?" he said and I looked at him.

"You ever lose a friend, Shun-kun?" I asked him. He thought about the question for a moment and sighed.

"It was really hard for me to let Hiroyuki go the last time he visited… and…Juuichi-san…" he said, his eyes starting to fill up with tears. Damn, I didn't really want him to cry.

"Shun-kun…" I said, and he shook his head.

"It's okay. Someone once told me that it's okay to cry. It's not your fault. But some days I do wish that Juuichi-san would hang out with us again. I wasn't super close to him, but he was part of the group, and now… it seems like he's not." He said, his ears drooping.

Wow, this kid has really grown up quite a bit. He's still his energized happy self, but he's seemed to really have control over his emotions.

"Shun… do you know why Juuichi hasn't come around anymore?" I asked him. His brow furrowed a bit and then he stared at his sandwich for a bit.

"Kouya was talking to me the other day… he said to me, 'Shun, people don't just change. Something is always forcing them to.' I'm not really sure what he meant, but I think he was talking about Juuichi-san. All I know is, I really don't like Ryoko-san." He said, tensing up at the mention of his name.

I didn't press further. No reason to ruin a great afternoon.

I told him that it was okay and asked him about video games. He perked up and told me all his latest high scores. At least it was easy to get his mind off problems. It must be nice to live like that. But me… I had some more answers and a possible lead. What does Kouya know about the situation?

My summer had just begun and already I had made a new friend and spent some time with Shun-kun! After we made it back to his house I said goodbye.

"By the way, Shun, is there some way I could meet Kouya-san?" I asked and he nodded.

"Tomorrow he actually invited me to watch him and his band practice. If you wanna tag along, I'm sure he won't mind!" Shun said, smiling.

"Sounds like a plan. I'll meet you here tomorrow morning then?" I said, and he nodded.

Good, this would hopefully be a chance to get some more answers.

Shun doesn't like Ryoko. That's enough proof that he's a bad person. Shun is as sweet as they come and likes everyone. For him to not like Ryoko… I shook my head. If Ryoko hurt Shun-kun somehow, there would be hell to pay.


End file.
